Reactive metabolites of phenacetin and acetaminophen: a review

Phenacetin can be metabolized to reactive metabolites by a variety of mechanisms. (1) Phenacetin can be N-hydroxylated, and the resulting N-hydroxyphenacetin can be sulfated or glucuronidated. Whereas phenacetin N-O sulfate immediately rearranges to form a reactive metabolite which may covalently bind to protein, phenacetin N-O glucuronide slowly rearranges to form reactive metabolites. Incubation of the purified phenacetin N-O glucuronide under a variety of conditions suggests that N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine is a reactive metabolite. This metabolite covalently binds to protein, reacts with glutathione to form an acetaminophen-glutathione conjugate, is reduced by ascorbate to acetaminophen or is partially hydrolyzed to acetamide. (2) Phenacetin can be O-deethylated to acetaminophen, and acetaminophen can be converted directly to a reactive metabolite which may be also N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine. (3) Phenacetin can be sequentially N-hydroxylated and O-deethylated to N-hydroxyacetaminophen which spontaneously dehydrates to N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine. (4) Phenacetin can be 3, 4-epoxidated to form an alkylating and an arylating metabolite. In the presence of glutathione, a S-ethylglutathione conjugate and an acetaminophen-glutathione conjugate are formed. In the absence of glutathione, the alkylating metabolite may bind to protein and the arylating metabolite is completely hydrolyzed to acetamide and another arylating metabolite which may bind to protein. The structures of the alkylating and arylating metabolites are unknown. Control experiments have shown that in pathway (1) the phenolic oxygen of the acetaminophenglutathione conjugate is derived from water, whereas in pathways (2) and (3) the phenolic oxygen of this metabolite is derived from phenacetin. In pathway (4) the phenolic oxygen was 50% derived from molecular oxygen and 50% from phenacetin. Administration of [p-(18)0]phenacetin to hamsters revealed only a 10% loss of (18)0 in the acetaminophen mercapturic acid (the further metabolic product of the glutathione conjugate) which suggests that, in the hamster, pathways (2) and/or (3) are the primary mechanism of conversion of phenacetin to reactive metabolites in vivo.